From Good Reads:Work comes first for 16-year old Socket Greeny's mother ever since his father died. That was 11 years ago. Now, in this tech-driven futuristic society, he's zoned on energy drinks and living in virtual worlds because Mom rarely comes home. He doesn't know what she does for a living. The bills get paid and the refrigerator is full, so why bother with details? His only real world thrill is fighting. He doesn't always win, but that's not the point. Breaking skin is a reality rush.

But a world can change in a single moment.

It's a school day like any other, until Socket starts hearing other people's thoughts. He's hallucinating, maybe brain rot from too much virtualmode. Even when time seems to stop, he ignores it. The mind playing tricks. But when his mom arrives at school, he knows it's for real. She's there to take him to work.

The Paladin Agency...

My Review:
THE DISCOVERY OF SOCKET GREENY is a wholely unique and enjoyable read. I like to read science-fiction and fantasy, but I'll admit that I was expecting something different when I started to read this novel. This is where I can experience surprise in a novel, because I haven't fully read the synopsis. I like to know just enough to intrigue me, but not tell me the whole story. So of course, the first step in Socket's journey was pretty much a surprise for me. But, a good one. One that didn't disappoint me.

Tony Bertauski's story drew me in, right from the beginning. I'll admit that I was really intrigued by this virtual world that Socket spent so much time in with his friends. He seemed so desensitized to real life, and anything that was happening around him, that at first, I wondered how he could be a "hero". However, I didn't feel that way for very long, as he moves through this new world his mother has discovered.

If I'm honest, I had some trouble crafting what I wanted to say about THE DISCOVERY OF SOCKET GREENY. It's one of those books that I feel I have to explain fully to really show someone what I liked about it. But, I don't do spoilers. And really, I could have probably summed up my whole review in less than 10 words:

I'm a writer, aspiring to that higher plane of becoming a published author. I love books in all their forms, be it electronic or print (though obviously, there is nothing like the texture of a book in my hands!). I want to share that love and meet others who feel the same.